unemployment

*beats head on pillow* (the neurosurgeon says no more beating my head on the laptop)

Is he kidding? No. Really. Is he kidding? I’m somewhat convinced that President Obama hates being president and has just decided to do everything in his power to make himself completely unelectable in 2012.

I’ve been watching Senator Bernie Sanders filibuster all day in opposition to the wildly unpopular tax deal President Obama brokered with the Republicans. Granted I think if the Democrats are so damn committed to helping the middle class and to defeating the tax cuts for the rich they should have been passionate for the past 11 months not just now at the zero hour but that’s a point for another time. Right now I’m pondering if President Obama’s staff hates him and like making him look bad.

Seriously. President Obama just brokered a wildly unpopular tax deal with the Republicans; apparently without first consulting the Democratic party. If they could get past the Secret Service his own party would be outside the Oval Office with pitchforks and torches. A senator from his own party was going on his 6th hour of a filibuster meant to defeat the President’s tax deal and what does President Obama do? He brings in Bill Clinton, who is revered in the Democratic Party to help him get the deal through then leaves the press room to attend the White House staffers’ Christmas party. After all he’d been keeping the First Lady waiting a half an hour.

*stares blankly at laptop screen*

I got nothing. I don’t know what to say. I really seriously am convinced that either he wants to be a 1 term president or his staff hates him. Last week I wrote about reading on CNN’s on screen ticker that the president might have to delay (not cancel) his Hawaiian vacation due to the tax fight and now he’s leaving Bill Clinton at the podium to defend his tax deal while he runs off to the White House staffers’ Christmas party. I don’t get it.

I was proud of him for taking on for the team and making a deal with the Republicans to extend the tax cuts for the middle class and for extending unemployment. It wasn’t a great deal but sometimes you gotta play with the hand you’re given and I’d rather the rich get their tax cuts than for the middle class to struggle any more than they already do. But that pride was squashed late this afternoon when the president and his people decided that a holiday party was more important than defending the deal he made supposedly to help the middle class. I have to question how much he cares about the deal or the middle class if rather than sticking around to defend his deal he runs off to a Christmas party. You have to question how much he cares about us (the middle class) if it seems his priorities are focused on Hawaiian vacations and Christmas parties.

Were the people on his communications staff absent the day they taught politics? Even if President Obama’s priorities really did lie in vacations and parties you’d think the communications staff would do their best to keep that under wraps. Did they really think it would play well with the Democratic Party or the American people to have their president rush off to a Christmas Party while a senator from his own party filibustered to prevent the passage of the tax deal brokered by the president himself? What does this say about him?

My 4 Theories on President Obama & His White House Staff (in no particular order)

1. He hates being president and is doing everything in his power to make sure he is unelectable in 2012.

2. His staff hates him and wants to see him voted out in 2012.

3. They’re handing out ineptitude pills to all West Wing staff as they report to work in the morning

4. He’s a plant from the Republican party to convince the American people to never vote Democrat again. (payback for the “Anybody but Bush” sentiment during the 2008 election?)

The rich get richer, the poor get poorer and the middle class works harder to stay afloat. This is change we can believe in?

Good evening kids. I’m taking a break from chronicling my recovery to rant and rave about my favorite topic, politics.

Me and the hubs caught colds over the Thanksgiving holiday so today was mostly spent on the couch watching CNN. It was a quiet day until I turned my attention to the ticker running at the bottom of the screen. It read, Obama may delay Hawaiian vacation over tax fight.

*Kaboom*

You hear that? It’s the sound of my head exploding? Holy Mother of God! Are they kidding me? Seriously. Am I supposed to feel bad for him?

Just yesterday he announced a 2 year pay freeze for all civilian federal employees. Today 2 million unemployed Americans will begin losing their unemployment benefits if the Senate doesn’t vote to extend the federal extended benefits program. Oh and let’s not forget about those folks who have been unemployed for 99 weeks or longer, who no longer receive unemployment benefits and who the government no longer considers unemployed.

There are families losing their houses, families struggling to put food on the table, families who won’t be able to put gifts under the Christmas Tree this year and President Obama may have to delay his Hawaiian vacation? Seriously. Are they kidding me? I have no words for this. I wonder if he or Congress or the Senate have stopped to think just how many Americans could use a vacation? I wonder if any of them have stopped to think of the families that could use a break from the uncertainty and the fear? Will we be able to keep the house? Can we keep the bills paid? Should we take the kids out of parochial school and put them in public school? Should we try to sell the house? Will it sell? How do we keep afloat?

As I stared at my TV screen in disbelief I wasn’t sure if I should be outraged or heartbroken. Maybe both? If the White House communications office wants this to be seen as a noble gesture they are seriously mistaken. Either President Obama and his staff have not one ounce of political savvy or they just don’t care how it looks to the millions of Americans just trying to make ends meet.

The theme of many of President Obama’s speeches both as a candidate and as president has been sacrifice. I’m curious. What is it that he and his family have sacrificed?